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City Proposal Would Add 6,000 Cabs To Better Serve Outer Boroughs

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- The head of the Taxi and Limousine Commission will be in Albany this week hoping to get approval for a new plan aimed at putting more taxis in the city to serve the outer boroughs.

TLC Commissioner David Yassky said the new plan would add 1,500 standard taxis and up to 6,000 cabs that would exclusively serve areas outside Midtown and Downtown, where it's hard to get anything but a livery cab.

While livery cabs are not supposed to take street hails, they often do so and overcharge in the process.

"And even when it's what you might think is a fair price, the experience of haggling and negotiating each time you get into a car -- that's not pleasant and people don't like it," Yassky told 1010 WINS' Sonia Rincon.

WCBS 880's Paul Murnane reports

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1010 WINS' Sonia Rincon Speaks With TLC Commissioner David Yassky

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It's unclear if the new taxis would be yellow, but they would be equipped with roof lights and meters so that customers would know what they are getting and how much they can expect to pay.

In Albany, Yassky will also likely run into
representatives from the livery cab industry, who will try to ensure that they are not left out of the conversation.

"I think that we're going to end up with the current livery cars that are actually functioning like taxis, picking up off the street. I think many of them will come in and get the new license," he said.

Yassky said the reality is that yellow cabs don't venture outside Manhattan and the new plan is a big step in trying to address the issue.

"If we're going to get service in Brooklyn, Queens, Bronx, Staten Island, we have to have taxis that are designated for those areas," he said.

SOUND-OFF: What Do You Think About The Idea?  Share Your Thoughts In The Comments Section...

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